


Fanning the Fire

by Slytherin_Decepticon



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-27
Updated: 2017-12-12
Packaged: 2018-12-07 15:19:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11626311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slytherin_Decepticon/pseuds/Slytherin_Decepticon
Summary: You've been in S.H.I.E.L.D for many years, never settling with one team for too long and eventually you get assigned to work with Coulson's group.  You finally feel like you belong, that you're part of a family and you're building lasting relationships.  Everything is going well, until you cross paths with Robbie Reyes after Daisy brings him into the fold.  For some reason, there's a feeling about him you just can't shake.  Fearing that you'll get in the way and ruin the friendships you've developed, over assumptions made, you volunteer to go on a mission and spend five months overseas doing work for S.H.I.E.L.D.This is two weeks after you return to the base.





	1. The Run-In

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is the first time in a long time that I am writing.  
> I don't claim to be the best at grammar but I try my best.  
> This point of view is also new to me, so there might be slip ups.  
> Also, I have a busy schedule so I'll be updating as I can, please be patient.
> 
> This eventually will get to the smutty parts, but I like a slower build and story development!
> 
> I hope everyone enjoys. :)

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

You weren’t supposed to ask this man back to your room, not yet. It was going backwards from how you expected things to play out between you two. Yet, the adrenaline was there from the training you had just completed with May moments ago and he had caught you exiting the locker room; if he hadn’t stopped you, your resolve may have kept. Though, here you were.

“And just where are you going?” He inquired, maybe a bit too nosily for your liking.

“To my room, do you want my hall pass, teacher?” 

What you wouldn’t do, to slam that man up against the wall and have your way with him. It wasn’t as though he had a girlfriend, to your knowledge. It was well known, however, that there was something going on between him and Daisy. At least, that had been the talk of the team that QuakeRider or some weird named relationship thing, was an item. You didn’t participate in the rumors, hoping that it was just a decent friendship seen in the wrong light. You didn’t dare press, though.

“I just might have to,” he retorted.

This caught you off guard, feeling your muscles tense as your gaze never broke from his. Your lips parted, to make a witty comeback… but nothing came. Instead, you opted to start moving again, bee-lining to your room. That was the point where your resolve began to chip away, the cracks widening… it was always compromised, it was just a matter of time before it shattered. Today couldn’t be that day, though. At least, that’s what you tried to avoid, but he followed in tow.

“Hey!” He called out to your retreating form, his footsteps becoming louder as he caught up to you. “You’re not running away so early, are you? Again…” 

“I gotta shower,” you bluntly answered. 

“Don’t they have those in the locker-rooms…” he seemed hesitant to inquire about that. It didn’t appear to stop him from continuing. “You sure that’s it? You’ve been avoiding me…”

He was in step with you, matching your pace until a hand clapped down on your shoulder and gripped, stilling your movements. Since you hadn’t expected the contact, he easily caught you off balance; your stumbling form eventually making its way against a wall to steady, his body a bit too close for comfort. It didn’t seem to be the result expected, by the way his grip loosened and his body parted from yours like he had just been burned. Funny to think that, too. After all, his skull burst into flames on occasion. Your eyes went to the hand he’d removed from you moments before, now planted against the wall as the other one did the same, boxing you in… unable to leave unless you ducked out of the way.

“Robbie…” his name finally left your lips in a sigh. “Now where would you get a silly idea like that, hot head?” Your tone didn’t seem to convince him, testing his gaze with your own; lips pressing in a fine line. Up close… he was intimidating. You hadn’t realized the height difference until now, he had a little over a foot on you. “Really, I’m not avoiding. We’ve both had a lot of work since more Inhumans are on the rise and S.H.I.E.L.D trying to clean up things that the…”

He didn’t want your excuses, no. That’s why you paused. You took a slow breath in, breaking your gaze from the Riders’, choosing to duck beneath one of the arms on either side of your head to make a run for it. It really wasn’t a run as much as it was a powerwalk of sorts. His footsteps weren’t heard, either. Maybe he’d gotten the message? It didn’t seem to be the case, soon hearing those steps stomping up your way. Paying no mind to the sound, you reached out to the knob, key in hand as you unlocked the door and moved to go inside. The movement was unsuccessful, though. Your body collided with his and he pulled you up against the wall once more, but his hands had a tight grip against each shoulder. You weren’t going anywhere, not unless you used force.

“Chica, I swear…” he sighed. From your viewpoint, it seemed his own will began to break down, but what did he have that for… with you, of all people. “If you don’t tell me what is wrong, I will make you.”

That chip in your willpower… became a hole. There was silence for a few moments, the only thing you could hear was blood rushing through your veins as your heartbeat picked up. Were you nervous? Whatever this reaction was, you didn’t want it. Rejection was the thing that you were terrified of and this was the point you spilled your heart to him. That couldn’t happen, not yet.

“Answer me,” he grit out, patience running thin. You could see it, the smoldering in his eyes, he was losing control over this. 

“Robbie,” you tried to sound reassuring. “There’s…” Nothing… you could do about what you did next, at least not reasonably. “Just come inside,” you sighed. Someone could see you, then the rumors might switch to you two and you didn’t want to get him in any trouble nor yourself.

He didn’t seem to buy it, by the way his hands tightened against your flesh; eliciting a soft hiss past your lips. Man, for someone that was trying to get answers from you, he certainly didn’t want them quickly. Just as you were about to ask him what his deal was, he let go and motioned for you to go into your room; one of the hands that previously held you, keeping your door open. It was probably precaution, so you didn’t slam it in his face and lock the door. Smart man.

“Can… I get you a drink, there’s the couch – I mean, you can see it…” The words babbled on and you felt his gaze bore into you. “Drink? I don’t think I asked that…”

When you braved looking up at him, you jumped from the sudden sound of the door clicking shut… not the sound of it closing; but the lock’s familiar turn. Your breath caught in your throat. Did the Rider have an issue with you? What sins had you participated in… was he going to kill you? Too many questions barraged your thoughts at once, causing you to just stand still and stare. You couldn’t say anything, you couldn’t bring yourself to move as he seemed to prowl towards you; like he was stalking prey.

“Now,” he spoke softly. Too softly, almost for you to catch. “I’ll ask you once again.” It was easier to hear Reyes’ as he came closer and closer, keeping his gaze in line with your own while doing so. “Why are you avoiding me?”

He was in your personal bubble, purposely, from what you could tell. Your head had dropped, looking at his chest and his hand came up; firmly taking hold of your chin to force you to look back at him. A gasp of air was taken in, eyes dilating. He seemed to falter in what he saw, the hold loosened and he couldn’t look you in the eye for too long. You were affecting him, in some way. At least, you wondered if that was what just happened.

“Why are you so concerned whether I avoid you or not,” your voice seemed distant to even yourself. What were you doing? “Last I checked, your attentions were elsewhere and you were happy enough to do that. You don’t hear me complaining, Robbie.” 

Here you were…

His hand removed completely and your gaze fell once more. You couldn’t look at him, heartbeat thrumming against your chest and your blood… Yes, you were living! That wasn’t something you wanted to be doing now, though. Maybe curling up beneath your sheets and forgetting that this was going on, that seemed like an option. That last thing you said? It wasn’t petty jealousy or anything of the sort. He’d just been spending time with the people who brought him into the folds. Robbie had every right to do so and you weren’t going to stop him.

“I’m pretty sure we both see this in separate ways. Miss ‘I will grab first mission I can get on’, the moment you saw me. You didn’t even say ‘hi’, if I remember correctly. You just up and left, I had to hear from Coulson.” 

There it was, the accusation. He wasn’t completely incorrect. The moment he came back from dropping off the book, who knows where, you panicked. It wasn’t like you two knew each other too personally, there had been quite a bit going on. Yet, there was chemistry, unmistakable between you two as well as between others. Which, to the other person you referred to, you felt it fair to step back and see where it went before weaseling your way in. The assignment you took? It took nearly five months to return from and when you had come back into the folds, you didn’t want to intrude on anyone’s time. You had only been back for about two weeks, by the point you two ran into one another outside the training rooms. 

“I…” You had no good excuse to that. The assignment hadn’t been given to you prior to him coming back. It was, like he said, your volunteering that earned you a spot overseas for all that time. “I wasn’t ready,” you spilled it before your brain had enough time to stop you. “I had to. I didn’t want to be in the way of you and Daisy. I care for both of you… didn’t want to…” 

By that point, he’d cut you off with a growing chuckle. Your eyes narrowed at him, nose wrinkling. What was he laughing about? Here you were, laying it out on the table and all he could do was seem humored about the entirety of your words… That didn’t boost your confidence in the least. So, you did what any reasonable person might have done. Stormed off. Reasonable. There were no glances back at the man who stood there, quieting down until you assumed he realized you weren’t in his line of sight anymore. The door to your room smacked the wall as you pushed it open. If he had protested, you didn’t hear. 

All you were concerned with was that shower you’d told him about earlier. That wasn’t a lie. You forgot an extra pair of clothes to change in for after-training and didn’t really see the point in showering, putting on the sweaty pair, and then showering again when you got back to your room. The door remained open as you looked through your closet, pulling forward hangers until you ripped a shirt down and tossed it onto the bed along with a pair of shorts. Every action screamed agitation, you weren’t hiding it. Off in your own little world, you turned to drop your phone onto your dresser, only to hit into a rather firm chest. 

He hadn’t left? Most might have made their way out, if they knew what was best for them. Not him, though. Hands lifted to press against him, giving him a slight shove out of your path. Though, before you could complete the action his hands captured your wrists. The man seemed rather amused with your outburst and continued displeasure for how he responded. That’s what you gathered.

“Woah, woah… no need to get violent now, chica.”

“Let go, Reyes…” 

You assumed he’d get the hint by not only your tone but choice of name, it wasn’t often you used his last name. He didn’t get the memo, however. This much was clear as Robbie backed you up step by step until you felt the back of your legs pressing against the mattress. What game was he playing? Just as you thought your heart could take a break, it was back to pumping furiously. You were nervous. Not that you outwardly let on, staring him down.

“Dios Mío… Whatever got into your head about Daisy and me, you need to stop it. She and I are just friends,” he spoke softly. “I’m sorry for laughing, it’s just… ridiculous. Clearly, we’re friends.”

He let go of your wrists some point during his confession. You only realized this as both hands came up to cup your cheeks, to keep your gaze or… His lips melted to yours in a sudden movement that left you light-headed. The hands that were going to drop to your sides came up to grip at his forearms to steady yourself. It took your lips a minute to respond to his own, the kiss growing heated rather quickly as lips parted and tongues tangled. You expected him to continue his movements forward, to get you into bed but he pulled away, breaking off the kiss to then place another against your forehead. Your hands unconsciously let go amidst your confusion, staring at him; searching for an answer to all of this.

“I’ll leave you to your shower.” 

Just like that, he left. He didn’t just leave your room, you heard the front door open and close as you stood there, a heated mess. So many questions left unanswered, but you assumed that he wanted you to know there was some interest. Why else would he kiss you? You felt foolish, especially in that moment. Those five months you were gone, you could have been getting to know Robbie better. You could have spent it with your friends, everything might have been different had you just gone with it.

It couldn’t be changed, but this hit you like a ton of bricks.

A cold shower sounded good right about now.


	2. Working it Out

You remained in your room the rest of the night and sleep didn’t come easily; tossing and turning throughout. Your mind wandered to ‘what if’ scenarios. Since you’d returned, everyone treated you like normal. There was no animosity between your teammates and you, they understood that you were needed, even if you had chosen to go. The only one that seemed perturbed about your disappearance was Robbie.

It wasn’t until almost five that you got to bed, you had to be up in two hours for training.

The day wasn’t nice to you, either, when you did wake up. The alarm that you set hadn’t gone off and you got a barrage of calls from May and an eventual drop-in from the woman herself when you didn’t wake to them. It took a couple of minutes for you to stir, feeling your mattress nudged roughly. Your hand came up to swat away the invader… only to remember, you had no one in your room. Shooting up from your position in bed you caught the gaze of a rather unhappy May; pulling your blanket up to cover yourself, you never did find going to bed in clothes to be comfortable as you stared at the other S.H.I.E.L.D agent. 

“I was half expecting to come in to see that you were avoiding training for another reason,” she spoke first. Her arms crossed over her chest, a look suggesting you better have a good excuse settling in on the features of the woman’s face. Your window to respond closed quickly, however. “Get up, you’re doing double training today… for each hour you were late.”

“May… wait, I…” You noticed the woman dismissively waving you off and exiting your room. That was a clear indication she wasn’t hearing any of it. “Fuck,” you hissed to yourself. Double training? That overlapped with Robbie, you knew that because you’d gone through the roster and picked times to purposely avoid him. 

The blanket dropped back to the mattress as you pulled yourself out of bed. The clothes you’d pulled out before that were thrown to the ground carelessly, wrinkled by this point. Your hand came up to palm against each eye, rubbing the sleep out as you bent over to pick up the shirt. It wasn’t salvageable for daily use, you might as well wear it to training. Since you hadn’t left your apartment, locking it to make sure you got no late-night visitors, you laid in bed and watched TV all night; you hadn’t found a reason to redress.

You gathered the rest of your clothes, all comfortable. You weren’t trying to impress anyone, especially not Reyes. Not right now. If you were going to be doing three or more hours of training? Comfort was your priority. The last piece of clothing to go on was the shirt, pulling it over your head as you smoothed it out as best as possible. It’d do.

“You don’t have all day and the more time you waste, the more we’ll spend training. Yet, I do have all day for this,” Melinda called out from your Livingroom.

You hadn’t realized she’d stayed, quickly making your way out. “Okay, okay. I’m here, let’s go…” you really needed to keep that irritation in check. You saw that glance that the other woman gave you and it sent chills down your spine. Yes, of course. Piss off the person who could easily lay you out, over and over… for what… three hours at this point? Each training session took roughly an hour and a half, sometimes more. Though, you were hoping that she’d get bored before the end of it and just make you train alone or something, in another room.

An hour and a half in… you were wiped.

Your lip was split, you had a black eye, blood was running from your nose, you were pretty sure she’d broken a bone… somewhere – definitely your nose. It was simple to see that your mind wasn’t in the game. May was going easy on you, too. It’s not like she wanted to rough up one of her better agents for the sake of doing it. It was good they didn’t have mirrors in the training hall, because you really didn’t want to know how you looked. 

“Take a break,” May called out and tossed you a bottle of water and a towel. “Clean up, too. Fifteen minutes, we resume.”

Uncapping the water bottle, you put the plastic to your lips just as you heard the door to the training room open. You’d forgotten all about Robbie as your eyes landed on him. Melinda, had gone over to him, at that point and they struck up a conversation you couldn’t quite catch with all the ringing going on in your ears. At that point, you found it completely necessary to turn your back to him as you used some of the water to get some of the dried patches of blood up with the towel.

At least your healing was enhanced. While you were overseas, you ran into some of the crystals… one broke and well, you weren’t quite sure what happened or what was different about you. It took you some time to realize that healing was severely reduced and every now and then, you did something that didn’t seem ordinary but… you couldn’t pinpoint anything. It was in your reports. The reason May had mentioned you didn’t have all day was because Fitz-Simmons had wanted to run some tests on you. Since your powers hadn’t manifested in any violent or outwardly way… aside from that one thing… they wanted to see if you were a late bloomer or something.

“Good, you two can…” you caught that bit and turned to face May and Robbie. You hadn’t quite caught the last part that Melinda said as she pat Robbie on the shoulder and motioned him over to you. “I’ll be back in twenty. Start.”

Had it already been fifteen minutes? Your eyes glanced towards the clock, no… ten. Of course. May didn’t stand around too long. He was walking towards you, too. Instinctively, you took a step or two away before he grabbed your forearm to stop you. He studied you for a minute, tugging you in closer and his other hand went to your nose. When you didn’t move, you assumed he was satisfied and brought his other hand up to the opposite side of your nose.

“Here, let me set that…” 

The only warning you got from the man before he cracked your nose back into the proper position. Your hands gripped against his sides, steadying yourself as a fresh river of blood spilled. In seconds he yanked the towel from your hand that you were holding against him and shoved it beneath your nose; holding it there for you.

“Fuck, shit...” it was hissed out; muffled beneath the cotton. “Warn me better next time, Robbie.”

You leaned into the cloth of the towel he held against your face and closed your eyes. If only reduction in pain had been one of the things you got. At that point, you two acted as though last night never happened. Either way, it was good he set it, your bones tended to repair in a few hours to days, depending on the severity. The last thing you had wanted to do was rebreak and reset. He pulled away the cloth to see if it had stopped bleeding and then tossed the bloody thing to the side before motioning to the middle of the floor.

“I promise not to hit your face,” his tone was humored. “I’d hate to add another black eye.” 

“Excuse you…”

“What, chica… A Qué le temes?” 

Your nose wrinkled. Spanish was not your forte, you had studied other language such as German and Japanese. Not Spanish. While it was a major language of the United States, you found it boring. At this point? You wish you hadn’t felt such a way, because you might have a witty comeback for what he just said. It sounded like there was a challenge in his tone.

“Whatever the fuck you just said, just get over there so I can kick your ass.”

Strength department? He probably had you beat. Yet, when it came to agility and skill, you hoped he hadn’t been training with May for too long. When you’d caught up with Daisy, she had said that he had shortly left after you took off, but it was because the book didn’t seem to be safe. Robbie had only shown up three months prior to you coming back and you were told it wasn’t the easiest for him to open into the folds. Robbie eventually had made a home here, though. Even his brother, Gabe, had been invited to live with S.H.I.E.L.D and was given robotic hookups to his legs to help him walk around so Reyes didn’t have to worry so much. 

You watched him walk onto the center mat, cocky. Maybe he hadn’t gotten the memo. The reason Melinda hadn’t been concerned about how long you two were going to train was because she knew you could keep up. The woman did her homework, kept up on her agents; she was a good S.O. Walking to the opposite side of the Rider you held a defensive pose and he returned his own.

“I’ll even let you have the first hit this time. Since you weren’t able to last night.”

That was the first mention of the prior night and it got your blood boiling. He seemed to think that this was like the first time you both had met and he floored you. It was a confusing time, before Daisy had really said anything about him being on the team and he just showed up out of nowhere. You had your ass handed to you, only to have Daisy rip both of you off one another and tell you to go to your respective corners and think about what had just happened.

“Really…” you muttered. “If you insist, Reyes.” 

It wasn’t as though you were going to deny him what he offered. You came in quick, he appeared surprised as you jumped up, seemingly going over him and threw your arms down to hook under his armpits and flip him with you. In that simple movement, he slammed into the ground and you heard a groan from beneath you. Your weight pressed into his, holding your forearm over his throat; applying a gentle pressure. It’s not like you were trying to kill or seriously hurt him.

“This isn’t a game,” you finally piped up. “This is training. Either you take it seriously or we can wait until May is back and explain to her why we’re not doing what she wanted. Then we’re both fucked. Which, I already am…” you found yourself rambling, nervous, as you caught on to how this might have looked to others… how it seemed to yourself. “Because I overslept, no thanks to you.” 

Now it was your turn to bring up the night. Though, it was a bad excuse and you had no one to blame but yourself, but you really wanted him to feel bad in some way; strangely. His expression changed to confusion as you blamed him for your sleeping habits. Robbie didn’t know you stayed up all night because what he did got under your skin that bad. You both hadn’t even seen each other until now. So how could he have known? You used your other hand to push up off the ground and off the man beneath you as you pulled away. 

“Disculpe, princesa. No sabía que te mantuve despierto por la noche…” 

There it was, that smug tone and you had no clue what he was saying. A growl rumbled low in your throat as you went back over to your side of the mat and resumed a defensive pose. He was already getting up from the floor and brushing off before circling you. Seemed as though you had him on his toes, didn’t seem like he was going to underestimate you anymore.

Both of you landed some good hits on one another, matching up by the point that May came in to observe you two. You were so focused on winning that you hadn’t realized you left yourself open. Your back was to the mat, arms pinned above your head and his body straddling yours within moments of him catching it and he grinned down at you. It was as if no one was in the room and you felt your body grow warmer, quickly squirming out from beneath him as he simply released you and allowed you to do what you needed.

“You know better,” Melinda chastised. She was obviously speaking to you. “Don’t leave yourself that wide open, what if he had been HYDRA? Again.” 

Was this a torture session? It had to be. You two squared off against one another for six more rounds. The score was Robbie: 3; you: 5. Not bad, besting him by one. Yet, you could feel the exhaustion hit you the moment May called for a cease in training. She gave you both homework to train on for the future and what she’d work on in the next session. 

“Don’t be late again or I won’t go easy on you and don’t keep Fitz-Simmons waiting.”

You felt a hand clap down against your shoulder, giving a reassuring squeeze as she walked out of the room. That woman was confusing to you at times. Your eyes followed her out before going back to Robbie. Both of you had bruises, cuts, drying blood… You both were a mess. Yet, you had less than a half hour to get over to the lab to get your testing done and it was at least a ten minute walk over there. This base was huge. You could at least freshen up and not smell like you’d been training for the past three and a half hours.

“Qué… Fitz-Simmons…?”

“Testing,” you simply answered. At least there were a few things you knew, from Spanish. You’d taken one quarter of a semester, way back in middle school. “I’m Inhuman, didn’t you get the memo?” It rolled off your tongue simply enough, but inside you were freaking out about his reaction.

“Cuándo ibas a decirme…” he sighed. “No, so what can you do? Daisy can quake, Yo-Yo’s speedy…” 

He silenced when you held your hand up. “Dunno,” you huffed. “Don’t know if I want to. At this rate? I heal, super-fast. This broken nose… will be healed by the time I sleep tonight. Busted lip?” The one you got from May, it was already sealing back up as if it never happened. The fresh one from him… it was in process. He could see it all happening before his eyes. 

“So, you’re just a quick healer…” he mused. “Damn. Here I was, thinking that you’d have something cool to back up your spirited personality.” 

“Sorry to disappoint,” you muttered and walked away.

That kind of hurt. Deep down, you knew he was trying to be playful. Yet, you felt like when you went through the transformation, of all things, you would have come out with something more interesting than a healing-factor. Spider-Man had this, so did Wolverine… a lot of people could do this that were superpowered. Even Steve Rogers, for heaven’s sake, had a healing factor. It’s not that you didn’t feel special or that you couldn’t use it to your advantage, but it wasn’t… like the other’s. It was just a big letdown on your end. 

“Wait… I didn’t mean it that way,” he called out. His hand grasped your shoulder to stop you from leaving the training room. “Let me walk you?” 

You stopped, staring at the door before finally nodding. “Fine,” it was sighed. The door swung open and he let go and you two made your way off towards the lab.

“So, what are you hoping to find?”

“I’m not sure,” you admitted. “I kinda feel like a late bloomer with my powers. There’s… just something else going on and I can’t put my finger on it. I don’t know what it is, but… other things happen and then they don’t.” Was it your eyes tricking you? Might have been. It just had been bugging you since you transformed. 

“How… long, then?”

“It’ll be seventy five days, twenty hours and ten minutes…” 

“And I thought Daisy was crazy about when she transformed.”

You shrugged, rounding a corner and then another. You two walked in silence the rest of the way, which was only four more minutes as Fitz and Simmons noticed you when they gave big grins and Jemma waved excitedly to you. Their expressions turned curious when they noticed who you had in tow and you gave a shrug to both of them before the doors to the lab slid open.

“Come, come… ah, Robbie – we weren’t expecting you. Does this mean you’ll take us up on the offer to…” Jemma was cut off.

“I’m good, it’s not my thing.”

“Oh, come on, Reyes…” Fitz piped up. “How many times do we have to tell you it’s not like you’re a lab rat… we’re just gathering information.” “Yes, information,” Jemma piped in. “Like to better figure out what you are and maybe it’ll help with…” “With future weapons and security devices. There’s a whole world to explore.” 

“Regret walking me, yet?” You looked over to Robbie.

He seemed uncomfortable with the prodding, prying, and basically begging to be tested. Your hand grabbed onto his and you tugged him with you. Fitz-Simmons appeared to double-take as you watched Fitz’s lips part as though he was trying to say something and Jemma’s hand cover her own in shock. A roll of your eyes got them to correct themselves and quickly get into work-mode. He didn’t answer you, though. So, you decided to break the tension.

“Help me up, these things aren’t vertically-challenged friendly,” you asked Reyes.

Right now? You were just glad to feel like the team was back to normal; like you hadn’t run away, much like Daisy had, but… not like her. It wasn’t as though you did any vigilante work, it was all OK’d by the higher ups at S.H.I.E.L.D and… so on so forth. Though, the only one who gave you hassle or seemed to be overly offended about it was now lifting you up by your hips to get up on the table. It was being carefully watched by Fitz-Simmons, too. Your gaze on them as they appeared to be digesting the sight in front of them.

“S…so…” Jemma, started. “Here, heart rate… and we gotta draw some blood.” She walked over to you and motioned for your hand and you lifted it up, a device being clamped around your index finger. Immediately after, you felt her tie off your upper arm with a band and she tapped around for a vein before pressing the needle into you. “Just a bit of blood.” In saying that she soon filled up five vials before putting them off to the side for Fitz. She ran off for a few more vials before moving to your other arm.

“So,” Leo piped up. “How long has… this,” the scientist motioned between Robbie and you, “…this been going on?” 

It was a failed attempt at small talk, the heart-rate monitor picking up as it started blipping to inform them that your heart-rate was a little too fast for rested. Robbie stared at you, you could feel his eyes boreing holes into you and you hoped that something… yep… good ole Simmons.

“Are you okay? Oh, goodness. I didn’t stick you wrong, did I?” Jemma seemed to panic, oblivious to what might have truly set it off. “I’ll try and be more careful, here…” She pulled the needle out for the last time. “Done, all done.”

“Thanks…”it was almost a whisper.

You fiddled with the monitor, trying to control your heart rate, before hearing Leo once more. “I mean, it’s okay…” he started off again. “Did you hear Mack and Yo-Yo finally…” “Fitz…” Jemma chastised. “Not right now.” She had effectively cut off the other scientist as she took samples of your healing wounds… how? You had no clue. 

“Well, Jem… I’m just… trying to make her comfortable. You…” Leo seemed at a loss and a soft huff came from the man as he took the samples from Jemma the moment they were handed. “I mean, when we found you, didn’t seem like you liked the lab too much when we brought you back.”

“Who likes being stuck with needles and woken up in the middle of the night, cold… rooms? At least I didn’t have to wear a hospital gown with no back…” You retorted, maybe a bit too harshly for the man as his head ducked. “I… mean. I was in quarantine the first week with you guys because of that suspicious stuff or what not. Then I was reassigned to you.” 

“But…” Jemma chimed in. “We make a good team, all of us. Without finding you, this wouldn’t be! I do wish you hadn’t run away, though. Five months, hun… you didn’t even give us a post card or anything. We were worried sick…” “Coulson gave us updates” “Yes, Leo… but only when he sought fit!” 

These two were too blunt for their own good, even if it was in innocent conversation. One hand came up to pinch the bridge of your nose as Simmons turned around to gather a few things. Reyes had stayed silent through the entire exchange, surprising. So, maybe not everyone was fine with how you left. It was quite possible that they had been hiding it from you until… interactions such as this happened.

“Yeah, I could have given more updates. I wasn’t really allowed to do that, though,” you finally admitted with a soft sigh; hand dropping back down to your lap as Jemma came up again to give you a doctor-like check-up. Shining a light into your pupils. “I didn’t control what Phil said or not, either.” You continued as she dropped the light and went to looking at the needle holes that were nonexistent at that point.

“Still…” Simmons seemed deep in thought at that word; writing a few things down as she turned to Fitz. “How long until the results come in?” “Not much longer, Jem.” “Good… so. Why did you leave?”

“What…” You deadpanned at the female, lips pressing in a fine line. “My skills were perfect for the job, it’s not like I forced myself over there. I had to get chosen, still… from like a group of five people.” You were getting aggravated at all the prying and the two scientists seemed oblivious to it, but Robbie was more than amused.

“If you say so,” she finally settled. “Oh…”

There was a small chime and Fitz was already bringing 3D images up at the table. The two were lost in their own world and they left the both of you alone on the other side of the room to chatter away. You wanted to know what was going on, they seemed concerned… their looks. Yet, Robbie pulled your attention away by bumping the side of the table you sat on and jostling you some.

“You okay,” he finally broke his silence. “You went through quite a bit of emotions in these last thirty minutes. I hope they haven’t broken you, I know how much you weigh and carrying you back won’t be an issue but I won’t let you live it down, chica.” 

He was trying to comfort you. It worked, for the most part as a small smile cracked across the features of your face, followed by a soft chuckle and a shake of your head. You didn’t deserve him, them. Any of it. You had… up and left. Even being back two weeks, trying to make it seem like everything was normal. It wasn’t, there were pieces you were picking up and putting back into place. It’d just take time, which you had little patience for.

“M’fine, Reyes…” you murmured. “I…” 

“So!” Fitz clapped his hands together and startled you out of your conversation with Robbie. “Seems like you’re all fine, for the most part. You have similar changes in your DNA structure… but…” “There’s something else!” Simmons cheerfully stated as she walked over. “It seems like you might have something else,” he continued. “Like, that’s not the only thing you can do… the healy thing…” “Aah, it’s so exciting. We can try and figure out why it’s taking so long…” she continued and went to her books. “There’s been a few documented cases of this, but normally it comes pretty fast.” Simmons found a page before looking back over to Fitz. “You think?” He piped up. “I do think…” 

You watched Leo walk away for a moment and Jemma type a few things into the computer in front of her before jotting back down into her notes. What the hell were they thinking? Their little silent-look talks had you on edge and it wasn’t only you that was aware of this. Robbie’s hand came down to give yours a reassuring squeeze, appearing quite understanding through this whole ordeal before he quickly parted when Fitz looked your way. He had a wrist… watch…bracelet? Your nose wrinkled at what it could be, but you weren’t an accessories type.

“Wear this,” he stated. “It monitors everything. Vitals, takes a sample of blood every few hours and sends us results. That way you don’t have to spend the night.” “We came up with it a few months ago, no one likes to stay overnight so…” “Yes, so… we thought that this is a bit less invasive and will give us a better reading,” he continued to Jemma’s interjection. “Basically, we’ll be able to tell if you’re just all rapid cell regeneration or if there’s more… and how it shows up… so if you get angry, stressed, so on so forth.” 

It seemed to be a struggle for Fitz to explain this in ‘normal’ terms as he paused quite often to find words that you’d understand. He’d gotten better with leaving scientific phrases out, having been told that it didn’t really help for him to explain it in four separate ways. 

“Okay, cool… so I’m done? Right!”

You slipped off the table, unhooking the heart-rate monitor and taking the bracelet from Fitz. Though, he didn’t let you get far as he grabbed it back, “It’s not a toy! It can get wet, but be careful with it.” You stared at him a moment and he gently grabbed your hand to outstretch your arm so he could attach it around your wrist. It gave a small click and secure to your wrist.

“…How did you say I take this off again?” “You don’t,” Jemma stated. “We do! We’ll expect you back here in a week.” “Oh…a… week of this.” “Yes, now go… go. I’m sure you have quite a bit to do, we’ll call you if anything significant comes out,” Simmons sing-songed almost while patting you on the shoulder and turning back to her work with Fitz. 

“Oh, you two can come by the movie night tonight… Yeah?” Leo piped up. “It’s at nine, we’re gonna pick the movie then and start it by nine-thirty.”

You made your way out, the door sliding open by the point that Fitz asked that and your head turned towards the two. They expected you to agree and you gave a soft sigh, nodding. Sure, why not? Couldn’t hurt to get out of your room. That was the best they were getting from you, though. The Rider, on the other hand, shrugged. Didn’t seem the response that they wanted but you two made your way out quickly before either of them started in on the both of you. When the both of you were far enough away you jabbed Robbie in the side with your elbow rather hard, glaring at him.

“A shrug? Come on, they’re trying to be nice…” you chastised him. “You don’t always have to play badass car guy, too cool for school… all the time.”

“You don’t always have to agree to do things, either…” he grunted his response; rubbing his side. “What, are you upset? Do you want me to go…” The Rider pushed, taking a few steps in before he was finally in front of you and blocking your walk-way. “So, what was with that heart-rate spike, earlier? Huh?”

Of course, he wouldn’t have forgotten that. You weren’t safe from his memory at all! You looked up at him as he stood in front of you, aware that your cheeks were coloring a deep shade of pink. Chewing on your lower lip you eventually ripped your gaze from his and side-stepped around him to continue walking, thankful that he didn’t force you to stay as he had before. He merely caught up in pace with you, stealing glances here and there. He seemed satisfied with the response enough, if he wasn’t pressing further. Last night spoke volumes, you had said enough and that little incident in the lab only further solidified the idea in his head about her feelings for him.

“I’ll go, but you owe me something in return.”

“And what would that be?” 

“A day with you,” he simply put it. “Not some stupid place in the base, either. Alone. Out and about, get to know one another… maybe tell me a few stories of you overseas. So, I know that it was worth it that you were gone all that time.” 

“Isn’t that just a date…” you drawled, trying to contain your surprise.

“Whatever, chica. If you want that, sure.”

Just like that, he was back to playing cool-guy. You walked in silence, he didn’t press for your answer… not until you arrived at the door that lead into your room. You stood there, as though you weren’t quite sure how it worked. So, he took your keys from your hand that you unconsciously fished out and opened it for you. He made no moves to go inside, but he did nudge you forward; which you eventually ended up inside your little apartment, looking back at him over your shoulder, expecting him to follow.

“I’ll see you in two hours, I expect an answer by the end of the night.”

With that, Robbie turned around and made his way off, leaving you rather confused about the entire situation. Just last night he was on your ass about leaving… then you spilled… and then he kissed you. Now he was wanting to go on dates with you? You realized that there was a lot that the Rider was going through and you didn’t really blame him for the spectrum of emotions. Even you had your issues, but you weren’t quite sure… how to go about this.

Closing the door behind you, you set to taking another shower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> I hope people are enjoying it so far. :)


	3. The Choices

You came out feeling refreshed, a soft sigh passing your lips.

No more dried blood, no more sweaty feeling. Your stomach growled, though, grabbing a quick dinner which consisted of an udon noodle cup; you noted that you were going to be late if you dawdled anymore. For the night, you had chosen to slip into a pair of black yoga pants and a comfortable neutral-colored tank top. If you were going to be watching late-night movies, you might as well have been wearing pajamas. This was as close as you got, without putting on the pair your Mom sent you on Christmas… the ones with the cat patterns. That was the last thing you wanted, Reyes to have more fuel to tease you. As you grabbed your keys, you heard a knock at the door. 

“Just a second,” you called out. 

When you unlocked the door, you were shocked to find Robbie there. Why wasn’t he headed to the movie? Opening the door, the rest of the way, you slipped out of your room; closing and locking it behind you. The look you gave him didn’t take long to sink in as a grin settled in on his features. An arm went around your shoulder, seemingly at a perfect height for him to do so as he nudged you to walk forward towards the common-area.

“I told you I’d see you in two hours,” he reminded you. “I didn’t expect you to look at me like I had three heads.” 

The hold was rather intimate, feeling your body pressed against his as you awkwardly walked. You were sure the readings were off the chart for your heart-rate, blood pressure, body temperature… just… everything. Just imagining what conclusions those two would come to made you grimace. You tilted your head some, to look up at him as he peered down at you.

“Didn’t know you were picking me up…” you flat out said. “I just expected that you’d be there and all.” 

“Now where’s the fun in that? I had to make sure you came.”

Oh, like you were going to back out from the movie night you said you’d go to. You supposed that it wasn’t a bad move on his half, he had given a rather heavy question of if you two should go on a date or not. So, maybe he expected you to hide in your room. As you two neared the common-room, he respectfully broke away from you and urged you to go in first and he’d follow. You weren’t going to protest, there were enough rumors right now and this wasn’t one you wanted to deal with. Taking the first steps in, you were greeted by Fitz-Simmons immediately as they pulled you forward to look at the movie selection.

“So, we were thinking… and we narrowed it down to this with Daisy and Phil…” Jemma started. “Harry Potter, The Hobbit, or… Star Wars. All the first ones… so we don’t have to decide the next few times and we finish them.” “I still say The Hobbit,” Fitz interjected. “Yes, yes… so do I.” Simmons agreed.

“Sorry to burst your magic-hating bubble,” you started. “I love The Hobbit like everyone else… actually enjoy that entire list, but my votes on Potter.” 

“Yes! Three for Sorcerer’s Stone,” Daisy exclaimed as she brought in the popcorn. “Hey, Robbie. You, what’s your vote?”

You looked over your shoulder at him. It took him that long to walk around a corner? Well, he had been trying to cover coming in with you, for your comfort. Even you were interested in what he might want to see. Yet, it didn’t seem like you were going to get any insight as he gave a rather basic throw-away answer. Darn.

“Whatever you all want to watch,” he stated as he settled in on the loveseat.

“Lame,” Johnson teased as she sat on the available space next to him. “Popcorn?”

You felt your heart sink, he made no move to suggest Daisy move; rather, he took the offered snack. Why would he? You all were friends, here. Mack and Yo-Yo soon joined, taking your attention away from the two for the time being. In little time, it seemed that Harry Potter won out with five votes, Hobbit with two, and Star Wars with two. The two that didn’t care about picking, Reyes and May, eventually sided with team Potter. At that point, everyone had found their seat with their drinks and snacks and you settled in to the open spot next to Phil. Ultimately it was on the opposite side of the couch, farthest from Robbie as you made yourself comfortable in your spot and the movie began to start.

Luckily, you could enjoy the movie. There was a bit of commentary from Fitz-Simmons at points that they were quickly shushed and told to ‘enjoy it’, making you shake your head and smile. Those two. Always had to be a scientific reason for anything, especially magic. They had worked with Inhumans, Gods… and other things but there still had to be reasoning behind… not just magic.

Three quarters of the way through the movie, you realized your Reese’s Pieces bag was empty. Those were your only distraction from not looking over at Robbie and Daisy. You also noted that Simmons and Fitz were quiet at this point. It seemed they were drawn into the movie, finally… or sleeping. Your gaze casted over their way to find their eyes glued to the Television, a small smile gracing your features before moving to Mack and Yo-Yo who sat next to the other couple. The two couples made you happy. The fact that Mack and Yo-Yo finally officially got together, it had been a long time coming. Granted, they had started up before Robbie had returned and you left… it was just good they stuck to it.

Eventually, you pushed yourself off the couch, careful not to disturb Melinda and Phil, who seemed to have fallen asleep by that point. Now, when would they give up and give into one another? Even they deserved happiness. For the first time, you looked over at Johnson and Reyes. She was curled up on him, sleeping and his arm was around her shoulders; brushing through her hair. That didn’t seem like friends, to you. Then again, you hadn’t been in any relationships… You either had no time for them, like when you joined up with S.H.I.E.L.D or you had tried and miserably failed due to rejections, which were from your younger grade-school years. So, who knew. Maybe you overanalyzed the situation.

Either way, Daisy was the one to bring in Robbie, she made him feel comfortable here. He probably confided in her for a few things. You had just up and left, you could have been the one in Daisy’s spot, had you stayed. Eventually his attention turned to you and your eyes shot away, moving forward like you hadn’t been staring. You eventually made your way into the kitchen, using your phone to locate the snack pile as you grabbed a bag of M&M’s. Though, it didn’t take you long to merely drop the candy pack and decide that you were a bit too tired to continue the movie. It was just a bit past midnight and you hadn’t started the movie until ten. So, it wouldn’t end for another forty-five minutes to an hour.

You quietly slipped out back to your room. Robbie could wait for his answer until tomorrow, if he was curious. Would it be a yes or no? ‘Yes’, that’s really what you wanted to say. Yet, when you saw him so comfortable with Daisy – so many red flags came up. You didn’t want to be the side piece to another girl. Even though he firmly stated he wasn’t with Daisy and that they were just friends, what if he had feelings for her? He hadn’t denied anything of the sort. Maybe he was just too shy to involve himself with her, who knew. You looked at many angles; unlocking your door and closing it behind you.

Well, movie night wasn’t so bad. You wished that it started earlier, yawning softly; a hand going to cover your mouth as tears beaded at the corner of your eyes. You were exhausted. Eventually your face ended up in a pillow, too lazy to take your clothes off as you pulled the blankets over yourself and fell asleep.

The next morning you rolled over, to the symphony of your phone-alarm. Your hand sought out the device, quickly picking it up as you clicked it on to turn off the annoying sound. In your haze, you hadn’t realized just what was on the screen, your eyes adjusting to the light. Ugh. You hated mornings. You set your phone against your chest and closed your eyes for a few more seconds before picking it back up as you felt the vibration of a reminder to look at something.

Picking it up…

(✉) – (21) ᴜ ɴ ʀ ᴇ ᴀ ᴅ ᴍ ᴇ s s ᴀ ɢ ᴇ s

You stared for a good few minutes at your screen, did that say what you think it did? This wasn’t something you wanted to deal with so early in the morning. A soft sigh passed your lips and your eyes closed again. It wasn’t until you felt two more sets of vibrations that you paid any attention.

(✉) – (23) ᴜ ɴ ʀ ᴇ ᴀ ᴅ ᴍ ᴇ s s ᴀ ɢ ᴇ s

They… what. Who was texting you at eight in the morning? You assumed it was that, that’s what your alarm was set at; remembering the night before you emitted a soft groan. It was probably more than one person that was trying to figure out why you just dipped. You hadn’t wanted to say your goodnights due to the fact that it’d ruin the mood, you didn’t want to ruin the mood.

Flipping through the messages…

Sɪᴍᴍᴏɴs [12:13AM]: Where did you go?  
Sɪᴍᴍᴏɴs [12:15AM]: Are you okay?  
Sɪᴍᴍᴏɴs [01:30AM]: Fitz is worried… Well, we are worried. Did you not like movie night? We thought you would. Is it the bracelet? Are there any side effects?   
Sɪᴍᴍᴏɴs [02:10AM]: You should come visit us in the morning when you wake up!

Mᴀᴄᴋ [01:15AM]: where did u go u ok ???

Dᴀɪsʏ [12:20AM]: Yo…  
Dᴀɪsʏ [12:25AM]: You doing okay?   
Dᴀɪsʏ [12:30AM]: Are you coming back, it’s getting to the good part! You know, where they reveal He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!   
Dᴀɪsʏ [12:32AM]: You need to watch this for the next 7 wks of movies!  
Dᴀɪsʏ [12:35AM]: …  
Dᴀɪsʏ [12:45AM]: Well, I hope you’re good. Shoot me a message when you wake up. I’ll assume you’re asleep.

Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [12:10AM]: Get me something. Just no twizzlers.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [12:12AM]: Or not, where’d you go?  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [12:17AM]: Hey, answer. You still got to give me an answer tonight.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [12:22AM]: Don’t leave me hanging like this.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [12:25AM]: Are you ignoring me? I’m sorry if I upset you.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [12:30AM]: Seriously. I am. Come back, please.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [12:50AM]: Okay… the movie is over and you haven’t responded.   
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [01:00AM]: You better be sleeping.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [01:20AM]: I guess you are, unless you’re good at not hearing knocks.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [01:45AM]: Goodnight, I guess.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [10:12AM]: Where are you? You’re late, again. May is pissed.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [10:15AM]: I’m coming to get you. I don’t care if you’re dressed or not.

When you read that last text from Robbie, the color in your face drained. You overslept? No, no! It was only eight. You checked your clock again, seeing it was indeed ten after ten. What the heck happened? The text woke you up… you hadn’t closed your eyes for a few seconds. Son of a bitch. You rolled out of bed and undressed with lightning speed, redressing as fast as possible.

Your morning routine, yet again, was messed up. Why couldn’t May give you a break? You were brushing your teeth the moment that you heard furious knocking at your door. Each one sounded more frustrated than the next.

“Chica, so help me you better be awake or I will break down this door myself to retrieve you. Me debes mucho después de todo este lío… Open the do—” 

You had unlocked the door by that point and swung it open, to show him your disheveled appearance. There was a toothbrush still in your mouth, your shirt was on backwards… which you just noticed and were fixing as your arms pulled in and rotated it forward; you looked plain tired. 

“Donjus tand dere…” you hissed through the toothbrush as you walked away to spit out the toothpaste. “Fckn get’n…” 

You didn’t want everyone ogling you, now. He seemed taken aback by your appearance, but stepped in anyway. Robbie was cautious, now. It seemed all his previous anger was replaced by curiosity as he watched you frantically make your way around your apartment to recover lost time. A brush was going through your hair at this point and you pulled it into a high pony-tail. You’d just reschedule training, if Melinda would let you. She might. It was worth a shot, you’d already missed the entirety of practice and you knew she had meetings lined up for today. You royally screwed up.

“Why did you leave…” Robbie finally spoke up, catching your attention.

“Was tired, didn’t wanna bother anyone. The movie wasn’t over, sorry…” 

He didn’t seem satisfied with that answer, catching that flicker of irritation before he went back to a blank slate. A few more messages came in from May, all that suggested you were off the hook until next week. Apparently, she’d been sent on mission somewhere and wouldn’t be back for a few days, lucky you as you pocketed the phone and seemingly relaxed. Good. You weren’t getting your ass kicked today, but it was coming in the near future.

“You… make no sense, chica.” 

“Neither do you, Reyes. You tell me to give you an answer about going out,” you were breaching the subject now that you were more relaxed. “And pick me up from my room so you know I’ll go and then…” This just made you sound like a jealous tart, but he was jerking your emotions around. “You do… what you did last night.” There were no hard details on what he did, but he knew what went on.

“Sitting with Daisy?” He finally questioned. “She just sat there, I’m not going to kick her off. How was I supposed to know she’d…” 

Your back was already to him and you were walking away when he stopped talking. You assumed as much with the fact that he didn’t want to tell her to take a hike. Yet, it still nagged at you… how he wanted to get to know you but last night told a different story. Gathering a few more items, you eventually turned back to him; less rushed at this point, finding yourself eventually making your way to the front door where he still stood around.

“I get it,” you finally spoke. “Whatever, it’s whatever. Yeah, sure… hang out. I’m off for the rest of the day anyway, May is on mission. I should go see Fitz-Simmons to check out this bracelet and then I’m free. Just let me know, I guess…”

You opened the door once more and motioned for him to get going. It’s not like you had all day to stand around. Granted, what you had said sounded quite harsh and it seemed to leave nothing but silence in its wake. He moved out the door, frown on his face… you caught it for a split second before locking up your room and making your way to the lab. He didn’t say anything to you nor did he follow. It was when you looked over your shoulder, to see if he was just being quiet, that you realized he really wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Great.

“Oh goodness! There you are, ah…” Jemma grabbed the wrist that didn’t have the bracelet on it to tug you towards the lab, knocking you out of your daydream. “Come on, let’s get you checked out! We’re wondering if the blood taking might have made you too tired. We don’t want it to do that… it should just be a pinprick…”

“It’s… no, I don’t think it’s that. I just had a particularly rough training…”

It was eventually made evident that Simmons wasn’t listening as you found yourself literally dragged to the lab. You allowed it, however. It’s not like the woman could force you into much. When she let go, Leo and she started talking and you tried your best to get up on the table. Yet, it wasn’t so easy… wishing that you had a bit of help before you finally hopped up on it.

“Wrist,” Leo stated and took it when you offered it. “Doesn’t seem to be malfunctioning. It did just say that you passed out last night, the data… that it shows. It… I mean, it doesn’t tell us you’re sleeping. We just assume.”

“I get it,” you sighed. “I’m fine, it’s fine. I just didn’t want to bother anyone, is there anything else that you two need?”

It seemed your patience was wearing thin and they looked taken aback. It’s not as though you presented this side of yourself, often. You were agreeable and willing to put up with quite a bit, but… not right now. Both Fitz-Simmons shook their head, indicating they needed nothing further, so you hopped off the table to make your way out. Slipping your phone out of your pocket, you finally opened it up to get to the messages, having felt them earlier but unable to look them over.

 

(✉) – (3) ᴜ ɴ ʀ ᴇ ᴀ ᴅ ᴍ ᴇ s s ᴀ ɢ ᴇ s

Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [10:45AM]: 1PM. Your room.   
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [10:46AM]: Change into something comfortable for hot weather.  
Rᴏʙʙɪᴇ [10:46AM]: Actually, meet me at Lucy at 1PM.

 

You texted back, confirming you’d be there and you made your way back towards your room to change. The clothes you had on now? Not necessarily comfortable for hot weather. The base always ran a bit colder, so you dressed to accommodate such. Somewhere along the way, you wondered where he had picked, surprised he trusted you to come on your own. Yet, he must have known that you had some sort of desire to ride in Lucy, something you weren’t going to pass up.

You finally made it back to your apartment to change, you had two hours until you had to meet up…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, chapter 3, I hope people are liking it.   
> I'm having fun writing it!
> 
> :) 
> 
> I like hearing back from my readers, so don't feel shy to leave a comment.


	4. The Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long since the last update! I started college back up.  
> I appreciate all the comments and kudos, I'm having a lot of fun writing this.

It didn’t take you long to get cold feet.

Pacing in your little apartment, you thought of all the reasons why you should... and shouldn’t go through with this. Eyes looked over to the clock on the wall in your kitchen, fifteen minutes had passed. You’d wasted those minutes. So, by your calculations, you had less than an hour and a half to get ready. It’d take you at least fifteen minutes to get down to Lucy.

Why were you so nervous?

It might have been everything that had transpired over the short amount of time that you’d come back, but you also hadn’t been on a date since high school. In S.H.I.E.L.D? There was no time for dating. There were a few flings that you could have wrapped yourself up into, but nothing like what you had with Robbie. What you felt with him. Eventually, a deep sigh came from you while you made your way back to the bedroom to slip out of your ‘comfy’ clothes. 

An hour and a half later…

You were power-walking your way down to the hangar that they kept The Rider’s black charger in. The only two cars that were in the vicinity were Lucy and Lola. Ultimately, you’d decided on a simple black dress that covered just above your knee and some matching sandals. At least it didn’t make the data-bracelet stand out too much, it blended it nicely. Not to mention, the outfit wasn’t too spiffed up but if he decided to take you somewhere nice, you were dressed in-between casual and dressy. It worked out. Plus, it was one of the only nice pieces of clothing that you owned… that was clean.

“Shoot,” you muttered softly to yourself.

Upon entering the hangar, you saw him speaking to Daisy and you paused. It seemed they were deep in conversation, looking between the two. You could do this. Taking another step forward, then another, you eventually closed a decent distance between yourself and the door, to Robbie. A hand lifted in greeting, waving to Daisy. You had to stop worrying. Reyes wouldn’t lie to you.

“Hey there! Robbie was just telling me that you two are going out.”

Daisy broke away from him and made her way over to you; gently nudging your side with her elbow, her back to Robbie as her brows waggled at you. You squinted towards the other Inhuman, lips parting to protest. Nothing… was going to happen. This was two friends going out. Right? You shook your head, lips spreading up in a small smile. She didn’t really stick around for much more as she lifted her hand in, what you assumed, was a way to say ‘goodbye’ to the two of you. Turning your head as you watched her leave, he finally spoke.

“Hey,” he piped up. “C’mon. We don’t have all day, get in.”

Feet finally found the strength to move as you made your way over to the passenger side door that he held open for you. His head jerked towards the car, indicating you should get in. One leg pulled forward into the car and your body followed until you seated comfortably in the Charger and he closed the door behind you. Eyes followed him as he made his way around the front of the car to the driver’s side after creating the portal. The door opened and he started up the car as the engine roared to life, muffling the closing of his door. 

“Seatbelt, chica.”

Pulling the seatbelt over your midsection, you clicked it into place and you felt your back press into the seat as the car propelled forward. Tires screeched and through the portal you went, feeling the terrain change and seeing it morph around you. There was foliage, almost like a wooded area but it quickly ended up behind the two of you as you saw a large city. Where… were you?

“So… where are we headed?”

Your curiosity got the better of you, but he didn’t say anything. The silence was a bit unnerving and you shifted uncomfortably in the passenger’s seat. He hadn’t said much since he saw you, didn’t even compliment what you were wearing. Your gaze drifted out the window, watching a couple of signs pass, gathering that you were in California. 

“Home. Well, what used to be,” he eventually stated. “Wanted to grab something to eat and then, if you wanted, I could show you around. Lame first date, outing; whatever you wanna call it.” 

He was opening up to you, that’s what you assumed. The fact that both of you knew very little about one another… this was the best he could do; give you a glimpse into his old life, before S.H.I.E.L.D and the ability to get closer to him. The fact he was back in his hometown, you weren’t quite sure if it was a good thing; noticing the strain in the features on his face.

“I’d like that,” you assured him his decision was a decent choice. 

“Good, because I’m famished,” he immediately shot back. “And I haven’t had La Azteca in months. You’ll like it, at least… I hope.” 

A soft chuckle came from you, “whatever you want, Reyes. After all, you’re my ride back. I trust you.” The area wasn’t anything like your home. You were from the Midwest, what you considered to be Midwest. “So, this is Los Angeles?” You had done a bit of reading and Daisy said a few things, hopefully you had it right.

“East side, yeah…” he trailed off some. “Not exactly what you’d think or what the movies show, but it’s home.”

The Charger came to a stop and he shifted the gear, parking it and unbuckling his own belt before you noticed him look over at you. Holding your breath, you watched him come in closer, leaning across the seat till your faces were mere inches apart. What was he doing? The click of your seat belt and the sound of it winding back up, broke your daydream when he pulled away once more. What a tease. He exited the car and in that moment, you took in a much-needed intake of air before swallowing hard.

“He’s gonna be the death of me,” you mumbled to yourself. Your door was opened again and you stepped out, “thanks. You know, you don’t always have to open my door. I was getting…” your train of thought paused as you stepped out of the car. “There…”

His arm went around your shoulders, steering you towards the restaurant.

You two were there for a few hours, having picked a corner table away from curious ears and prying eyes. The privacy allowed you two to bond, in a sense. Refills of drinks continued to come as you both talked; Robbie spoke of his childhood, building up to the time that he became The Rider. The conversation seemed to taper at that point, as if he were hesitant to remember those events, but you had reassured him with a gentle squeeze against his hand. Daisy had gone over the details of him becoming Ghost Rider, but it was different hearing it from the man himself.

Eventually the subject turned to your own childhood, spilling your life story to him. You went into you’re the early parts of your life, nothing out of the ordinary of what anyone might think. You parents were still alive and you had an older sibling who had two children. He seemed surprised by the fact that you had a family, as if he were wondering why you were in S.H.I.E.L.D and not with them.

“There was a point,” you murmured. “I wasn’t sure if I wanted to continue with this. I miss them,” it was admitted. “Heck, I told them before I left… I wasn’t going to be able to contact them for some time and I wasn’t sure when I could.” Your gaze broke away from his, bringing your glass closer and your lips closed around the straw while you sipped a bit. “They know who I work for; now, at least. Not necessarily happy about it because it can be dangerous, but they support me.” 

“How often do you see them?”

“Last year I saw them… at least five times?” A soft sigh came from you. “Not enough, honestly. Phil said I could take some time off here in the next week or so, said I deserve it or something.”

You had brought up the idea of coming back to your parents the moment you got the news. They were ecstatic that you might be able to visit, but you worried sometimes. The fact that you worked for S.H.I.E.L.D made you a target and if anyone connected the pieces? Well, it wouldn’t bode well for your family.

“Funny, I’m taking off time here soon too.”

“Oh? What, isn’t it a bit early to start visiting my parents, Robbie…? We haven’t even established what the next step is after this friend-date,” you teased.

“I don’t see any reason why not.”

Your eyes studied him; he was being serious. By the tone of his voice and his overall body language, Reyes was taking your jested offer. You felt a familiar heat in your cheeks and a small nod was all you could muster. Your parents were always worried about you not finding anyone and they were more-so concerned due to the nature of your job. Maybe playing boyfriend and girlfriend might get them off your back about finding that special someone.

“If… you want? I mean, it’s just Missouri.” 

“Never been there before. So, you can take me around town and give me the tour.”

A shrug came from you. Of course, this was his way of trying to get you to do the same as he did; it was only fair. You saw many problems with this plan, but you also liked the idea of some sort of normalcy. S.H.I.E.L.D was great and all, but sometimes you wondered how it might have been if you never joined. You might have had a boyfriend by this point, possibly married, maybe a kid; who knew? Though, it was the problem of the added change to your person, being Inhuman, that really struck you. If you had something beyond healing, which you hadn’t even told your parents this news, then it’d be hard to find a partner outside of S.H.I.E.L.D if you ever wanted to leave.

After all, you’d be on the registry that they were making all the superpowered people sign up to. Hopefully you weren’t on it, probably were, but you could have some sort of optimism. There was a silence that settled between the both of you. He was the first to stand and you followed, the tab already paid for by him, even though you said you could get your own or both. He wasn’t having it and making him go all bonfire on the place didn’t seem like a solid plan.

“Tomorrow,” he was the one to break the quiet-streak between you two. “I can get us there quick enough, I’ll even bring the charger.” 

Just what your parents needed, a heart attack. He was the picture of ‘bad boy’ and you were too old to have any of those in your life. You hoped that you might get a day or two, to explain what you were up to, but it seemed that Reyes had other plans. They were going to be weary of him at first, unless he played his cards right. Your family was big on first impressions and that Charger could give the first one, easily. Yet, you couldn’t say that you didn’t have a thing for it. One of your hands unconsciously laced with his as you both walked back to the car. He didn’t pull his hand back nor make much of a fuss about you doing so, merely catching the curious side-look he gave.

He lead you to the passenger’s side of his car and opened the door back up for you. Once again, you situated yourself back into the seat and put your seatbelt on while he got back in the driver’s spot. The rest of your outing consisted of him showing you where he grew up. You saw the childhood home that Gabe and he had been raised in by their uncle Eli and where they’d gone to school. Everything seemed to be fond or at least mostly fond memories, but the sun was going down and The Rider was starting to get restless; seeing his eyes shifting time to time, an internal battle going on.

“We should get back,” he stated abruptly.

Before you could even answer, he parked the Charger long enough in a secluded area to remove himself and portal once more. You wondered if he might be able to make the portal while in his vehicle or not, probably something he should see about. Robbie reentered and drove through, already in the hangar and parked his car next to Lola. There was an extended silence and his hand settled against the one in your lap. Your gaze drifted to him and a small smile spread across your face. You knew what was about to happen.

“I wish… I could walk you back to your room, but…” “No… no, Robbie, don’t. It’s okay,” your words cut his off. “Seriously, I promise.” There was no bitterness in your tone, only empathy. 

Shifting in closer, in the heat of the moment, you leaned over and your lips planted against his; his hand tightened against yours, in what you could only assume was surprise. Yet, his free one went to tangle in your hair just at the base of your neck. It lasted mere seconds and he was the first to break, his forehead pressing against yours. You knew what this meant and your nose brushed his, lips barely ghosting against his as your free hand went to open the passenger’s door. The hand at the back of your head loosened its grip when you tugged back to retreat, his look laced with something you couldn’t quite put your finger on.

“Tomorrow,” you reminded him. “Or I’ll hunt you down.” 

He only chuckled, shaking his head at you, “I got it, just be ready… and I’d let ‘em know, chica.”

You paused in getting out of the Charger, pulling out the set of keys you brought with you. Fingers gripped onto a key after looking through the ring they were on and you worked it off, handing it to him. The look that he gave him suggested that he knew what key it was, the spare to your apartment. Stepping out of the Charger, you didn’t give him time to answer you and you closed the passenger’s door behind you and made your way off. Resisting the feeling to look back, you miserably failed as the engine roared back to life and your gaze caught the tail end of the charger before the portal closed as if it hadn’t been there.

Well, the night had gone better than expected but he was right; fingers tapping away on your phone as you texted your parents plans to show up tomorrow. They’d be either in bed or trying to, it was ten at night for you but it was only nine for them or you might have called instead. After all, their texting was atrocious, but you assumed that the acronyms just made it easier to deal with the technology and they only had one phone between the two of them, as well. 

(✉) – (3) ᴜ ɴ ʀ ᴇ ᴀ ᴅ ᴍ ᴇ s s ᴀ ɢ ᴇ s

Mᴏᴍ & Dᴀᴅ [10:03PM]: ur welcome @ ne time sweetie, will u be home 4 din?  
Mᴏᴍ & Dᴀᴅ [10:03PM]: when did u get a bf?  
Mᴏᴍ & Dᴀᴅ [10:05PM]: ur dad will be happy :) 

You responded that you probably would be around for dinner, but you weren’t sure. Correcting your Mother might result in a conversation you weren’t ready for as you reached your apartment and unlocked it, going inside and locking it behind you. Honestly, you hadn’t realized how lonely it felt to come back to an empty apartment each time, not until tonight. Now that you were in pure silence, the fact that you had made the first move and kissed him, hit you. You felt your cheeks heat up as your fingers ghosted along your lips, still feeling his. What had you been thinking? The phone in your hand vibrated, indicating that your Mother had responded as you lifted it back up, allowing the distraction. 

(✉) – (1) ᴜ ɴ ʀ ᴇ ᴀ ᴅ ᴍ ᴇ s s ᴀ ɢ ᴇ s

Mᴏᴍ & Dᴀᴅ [10:18PM]: I will make din, ur fav. We love u. cant wait 2 c u.

The only thing you responded with was a heart emoji, feeling the exhaustion settling in. Maybe you should get some rest; that same hand that brushed against your lips now covered a yawn. Usually you were a night owl, but tonight was an exception since you hadn’t been sleeping well in the past few nights. It’d be better to sleep on what you had done instead of freak out about how he had felt, even though it seemed he had enjoyed it too, as you came to your final decision. All the while, you peeled off clothing along the way to your bedroom, depositing them unceremoniously onto the floor in random parts of your home with the light still off in your apartment. Your feet shuffled across the carpet to gauge where you were until your knees hit against the mattress, body falling forward as you collided with the blankets; once that happened, it didn’t take you too long to pass out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> I hope that everyone is still enjoying it.
> 
> Feel free to comment, I love hearing back from readers!


	5. First Impressions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry it took me almost 5 months to update this!  
> School got so hectic and I am graduating in the next few days.
> 
> I wanted to thank everyone that has been patient and given me support.
> 
> I hope everyone enjoys this chapter and I hope to start on the next chapter soon. :)

Somewhere in the middle of the night Robbie took advantage of the fact he’d been given the key to your apartment. You felt the mattress dip and your eyes slit open, trying to adjust to the darkness. Maybe you’d rolled over and your body wasn’t taking well to it? A soft mumbling emitted past your lips and you felt something move underneath your torso and guide you somewhere. Survival instincts kicked in and your hand came out, gripping at what you assumed was the forearm of your intruder and your body flipped them onto the bed you were in.

“Woah, woah… chica… Estás bien, sólo soy yo…” 

It didn’t register that Reyes was the one beneath you, right away, breathing quickened and your eyes still struggled to see their outline. The voice was his, however. So, you calmed some and rolled off, staring at the ceiling as you tried to get your bearings to control your heartrate and breathing. He’d startled you pretty good.

“W..what the hell, Robbie…” you huffed out. “What are you doing here… wh..what time is it?” Sentences didn’t form easily for you and your brain went a mile a minute. Yet, you rolled to check the time on your phone, it was almost three in the morning. “It’s…”

“You gave me a key,” he reminded you. “And I thought it’d be easier to sleep on your couch to make sure we could get to where we needed to, on time.” 

You felt him pull you in once more, trying to digest that information. His talking went a bit too fast for your brain to catch up, the feed jumbling in your mind until it sorted out. While you formulated a response, his fingers gently ran through your hair in a comforting manner, almost an apology. Those words never came as you immediately pulled back, you lacked quite a bit of clothing, even though a blanket was between the two of you.

“I… no… yes… ah,” you ended it with a huff as your back turned to him.

“I didn’t see anything… or feel, you’re fine.” His words were soft as if he was reading your mind and he attempted to pull you in once more. “Come,” his words were more of a demand. “I came in here for a reason, I heard you freaking out.”

That wasn’t a surprise, not to you; for now, you let him hold you. Ever since the crystal had broken on that mission and changed your life forever, you hadn’t been the same. That same crystal took the lives of many of your partners, why were you the one that was able to walk out unharmed? There was a bit of guilt that bubbled within you each time you thought of that moment, the looks on their faces, the helplessness you had felt as you were wrapped in an alien-cocoon. For the longest time, you tried to deny how it had made you feel, get on with the mission. However, it affected you to no end and while you could fool others… you couldn’t fool yourself, not for long.

“Sorry,” you mumbled.

“Want to talk about it?”

Your eyes were half-lidded by this point, drifting in and out of sleep, much to your surprise. The way his arms wrapped around you, it made you feel safe and in so, comfortable enough to slip back into slumber. The fact that you were underdressed, hadn’t even crossed your mind, even after he had mentioned it. No, this was nice. A soft mumbling came from you, no real words said as you heard him chuckle softly. His lips pressed to the back of your head and he said nothing further, at least, not that you noticed.

It was some hours later that you found yourself waking. This was probably the first, in some time, that you could sleep through the entire night without waking up a handful of times. Some nights were better than others, but it had been a constant rollercoaster. Your body shifted to a seated position, one hand coming up to stifle a yawn before both went to rub each eye in a wake-up routine. Rested, that was a word you hadn’t used in a long time.  
“Mornin’…”

Your eyes shot down towards the voice coming from your bed. Beds didn’t talk… and they didn’t sound like Reyes. A confuse look plastered across your features, slipping off the mattress, a sheet covering you as you went over to flick your light switch on. Both of you groaned at the sudden light. One hand came up, acting as a sort of blinder while the other held tightly to the sheet.

“What… weren’t you… weren’t you supposed to sleep on the couch?”

Your voice had that obvious morning crack to it, swallowing as you tried to wet your mouth. Last night was coming back to you, in pieces. This was harmless, but you were curious as to why he stayed. It seemed he had kept himself a level above your blanket, so it’s not like you two were sapping off actual body heat. When the blur left your vision, you caught that he even seemed to have stripped some point in the night, only in boxers as you pulled the sheer fabric tighter to yourself.

“You held like a vice, chica. There was no gettin’ out of that.”

He seemed amused by your reactions, so much so that he was already headed your way. There wasn’t anywhere for you to go, your brain didn’t fire off as rapidly when you had just woken up. Without questioning, you allowed him to lift you off the ground as your legs wrapped around his waist. It was as if he were handling a child. One arm supported under you as the other crossed along your back, after flicking the light back off and he moved towards the bed once more; your own wrapped around his neck and a soft sigh emitted past your lips.

“C’mon, rest for another hour or so. It’s still early.” 

“But I’m up…”

“You can lay down with me for a little longer, you’re gonna need it for today. I’m sure…” 

The words were an obvious tease, to you. Though, not long after you stated you were fine, a yawn was stifled in the crook of his neck as he lay down with you atop him. Legs adjusted on either side of him, sheet bunching up around your hips as you did so, feeling his hand lightly rub across your back in a lazy manner. Hopefully he had slept well enough, especially if you death-gripped him throughout the night, maybe that’s why he was so adamant about getting a bit more shut-eye.

“You sure you just didn’t want cuddles?” It was a surprise you could form such a sentence, feeling his hand pause.

“Hey, you’re catching on quick.” “Am I now?” “Gotta give them a good show, right?” “Them…?” “Your parents.” “That… yes, that.” 

You had a fun day planned with your family back home. How could you forget that? Eyes closed, just letting him lull you back to sleep or at least get you relaxed enough to consider going back to sleep for a bit longer. Yet, that nagging little thing of ‘show’, kept you from doing so. He was trying to get to know you, right? Though, it also seemed he was walking on eggshells when it came to pushing the envelope with the whole idea. You weren’t quite sure what was going on. Was he interested or were you going crazy?

Either way, it seemed he had drifted off about ten minutes into rubbing your back. The only way that you figured such out was the fact that his hand stopped and a light snore started beneath you. That question would be saved for later. Your body slipped off his, resting beside him. This felt natural, frighteningly so.

You stayed like this, for an undisclosed amount of time. The fact you weren’t even aware of when you woke up, who knew how long your mind wandered. A sound caught your attention, the soft buzzing against your wooden nightstand just before your ringtone started to play. Robbie stirred next you as you reached over him to grab the phone, flipping the green phone symbol upwards to answer as it was brought to your ear.

“Mmn?” Such was your half-awake greeting to your parents.

On the other side of the phone, your mother gabbed on about plans that she’d like you to participate in the following day or what she was asking you if you wished to do, rather. You gave a rather lengthy pause, feeling the body beside you shift into a sitting position, pulling you in. It was as if he was trying to listen into the conversation without making it too obvious. You weren’t quite sure, especially with the lack of lighting.

“Maybe, I’ll have to ask…” A pause as your mother butted in, “no, Mom… he’s…” again you were cut off. “Come on, I’m not even awake enough for this…” It was your turn to be confused as your mom proclaimed it was already one o’clock in the afternoon, your nose wrinkling in confusion. So that made it two, for you; as this particular base was stationed on the east coast. “I had a late night… don’t even say what I know you’re going to. I’ll be there in a while…” Your Mother wrapped up the conversation with the usual goodbyes, “Love you too…”

Hanging up the phone, you heard a snort next to you as the arm that had wrapped around your side to reel you in moved and a hand mussed your hair up. It was as if he was treating you like a child and to avoid any backlash from you, he moved from his spot. It was now Reyes that turned on the light, disorienting the two of you as both of you adjusted to the brightness seeping into the room.

“Gah… could have at least warned me,” you muttered.

“I’m turning on the lights?” His voice was smug as he waltzed over to your personal shower, your eyes following him. “I’d ask you if you wanted to join, but… what was it you said without really saying it?” The pause seemed for dramatic affect as he stopped at the doorway, pointedly looking at you with a smirk plastered across his features. “If I recall it was ‘He’s not my boyfriend’, so…” With that, he slipped into the bathroom, the click of the door reaffirming the fact that he’d locked it.

Had you offended him in some way or was this a twisted way of teasing? Either way, it soured your mood as you took the guest shower, if that was the case. You were out of the shower by the time he was walking into the living room fully dressed, your eyes glossing over him before you pushed past. The toying with your emotions was getting old, but you could have been the one doing it to yourself. Maybe you were reading too far into things? Either way, he didn’t stop you and you dressed in the time given before you met him out in the living space. He had already packed for the two of you as you noticed the luggage by the door, your head cocking in a curious manner as your brow furrowed in confusion. When had he gotten the chance to do something like that?

“Did you… go through my undergarment drawer?”

“You were gonna make us late, don’t worry I just grabbed a pile… I was a bit more careful about the other things though,” he offered some reassurance to you. “I mean, you’re not trying to impress anyone while you’re there, right?”

No, you weren’t. Well, maybe him. If you had just stayed up a bit longer after he had dropped you off to pack your own bag, you might have put a fancy little number in there. It’s not like it hadn’t crossed your mind to seduce the Rider, but it seemed with each passing moment, he was jabbing at you. Why? You supposed it was time to test that little theory as a familiar sigh left you and your hand came up and casually dismissed his words in a small wave.

“I mean, I might have had someone…” you trailed, watching him shift his attention fully to you. “I suppose they might not be as interested as I am, though. So, I’m sure it’s good enough.” 

The tension in the room raised drastically, as if that wasn’t the response he expected. That elephant you thought had been there, definitely made itself at home as he crossed the distance between the front door and you. It was as if it all clicked, on his end. His lips melded to yours, without so much as allowing you to think about what was happening. Your body was the first to respond, before your brain. Lips parted and his tongue darted to dance with yours in a fight of dominance before his won out. The distraction broke momentarily as you felt yourself hit into the wall behind you, head turning to the side to break the kiss. It didn’t deter him, however. He trailed kisses across your cheek and stopped just before hitting your ear as a soft hum was heard from the man in front of you.

“I think we’re just skirting around the issue, chica. Neither of us can play this mind game for too much longer,” his voice was deeper and laced with something you couldn’t quite put your finger on. “I want you.” The butterflies that you had been holding off in your stomach, burst and you sucked in a deep breath of air as his hands pressed against the wall on either side of your head and his body parted back from yours to give the two of you a bit of distance. This reminded you of that day he’d tracked you down after training. “And I know this isn’t the traditional go-about way, but I’m tired of…”

You cut him off as your lips descended upon his, you closed the distance between the two of you. The hand that had settled on the wall behind you wrapped around your body, one around your torso and the other; fingers tangled in your hair as he kissed you back.

“Yes,” it was gasped out in response. “Just, yes.”

It didn’t seem that either of you needed to get deeper into the issue. That unmistakable chemistry drove you two together, no matter what logic dictated. Maybe it was the honeymoon phase of lust, but you were willing to take that risk with Robbie and he seemed ready to do the same for you. From an outside point of view, you were sure that this made little sense. Yet, to you, it felt right and that’s all you were worried about.

“Bedroom?”

All you could do was nod and you felt yourself picked up and walked to the room; lips met once more, only breaking as he pulled your shirt up over your head and discarded it. Kissed trailed along your jawline and down your neck, your back hitting the bed as his weight shifted the mattress, his body now hovering over yours. Teeth grazed along your neck, sinking into the flesh as a strangled moan passed your lips and he made short work of your bra, tossing it off to the side. You felt the cool air of the room lick across your flesh and his mouth already closed around one hardened peak.

“Fuck,” you hissed. “Robbie…”

It didn’t take long for that bubble to burst, your phone ringing as he recoiled from you and you swiftly moved; shifting over to grab the phone on the nightstand. Fuck. It just had to be then. Your greeting was hurried, almost irritated in tone as you realized it was your Father on the other line. Warmth was felt in your cheeks as you went flush from embarrassment, quickly apologizing and trying to backpedal. 

“No, no… you didn’t interrupt anything…” a nervous laugh came from you. “Yes, I’ll be… there for dinner, probably? What… time is it?” Eyes grew wide as it dawned upon you, how late it actually was. “Yeah, yeah… uh… I’ll call you when we’re close. Don’t wait too long.” Once more, you ended the call with a quick ‘love you’ and turned your gaze towards Robbie.

It was apologetic to say the least and he seemed to understand just where you were going with it. With that, you watched the Ghost Rider close his eyes as his weight fully removed itself from your person. He wasn’t going to forgive you for this, was he? The man was already collecting the two articles of clothing that were stripped from you, tossing them your way as you redressed in silence. What was there to say? This was just all a series of events that ended with bad timing.

“Charger…?” You were the first to break the silence.

“Charger,” was his response; agreeing.

The tone, you thought, didn’t sound mad. No, it sounded strained. You couldn’t blame the man, you two had worked each other up and there was no payoff on either end. A deep breath was taken in as the two of you made your way off to the hangar, luggage in hand.

It took about an hour for you two to reach your parents, still having to make sure that you didn’t arrive in the view of others. A portal wouldn’t be the easiest to explain to the everyday person that didn’t see the strange and unusual on a daily basis, like you. Pulling up into the driveway, you felt a wave of nervousness wash over you, why? It was as though you were wanting to impress him but you were afraid of how your parents were going to react.

“You ready?” He was the first to break the silence that had settled in.

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that…” “Yeah, you should.” “Are you ready?” “Not one bit.” “That’s not making this any better, Robbie…” “What better?”

By the time you were about to answer him, the front door had opened. His Charger was still idling in the driveway, of course your parents might hear it and become curious. The one heading it off was your Mother as you watched confusion wash over her features until her eyes caught yours and it changed to pure excitement. Of course. Your Mom was an interesting person, to say the least. However, your Father was what concerned you the most as he soon emerged from the front door. The look he was giving the Charger and the driver of said car, you knew that look.  
You hadn’t even heard the sound of the engine turn off nor Robbie open his door. Yet, yours was now being opened as your attention turned to who was doing such, for you. Lips parted, staring at Reyes as he offered a hand out. Oh, he was good. Real good. This was going to gain him brownie points with your mother and… your Father, on the other hand… couldn’t quite pinpoint what was running through his head with just a look as you took the Rider’s hand and he pulled you from the seat after you unbuckled yourself.

“Oh, sweetie! You’re home, it’s been so long… how are you doing. You, oh, you’re so cute… She didn’t tell us that you were so…” “Mom…” “Honey, come over here and see you daughter!” “Mother…” “Do you have anything I can grab, sweetie?” 

It seemed like you were talking to a brick wall as your Mother invaded your personal space and Robbie’s. You gave him an apologetic look, but the smile spread across his face suggested that he was fine with the interaction. He had even offered a hand out towards your Mom, but it was ignored and instead he got a hug as you watched her squeeze him; offering a small pat before ushering your Father over once more.

“Get over here, David!” 

“Lisa… let her get her things, you can smother her when we get inside.”

You watched your Dad keep his spot next to the door and your gaze went between him and your guest, even as Reyes collected all of your luggage. It was your turn to realize that you were being rude and you went to grab something from him and he shook his head.

“I got it, don’t worry.” “Robbie, you don’t have to impress him…” “I’m not.” “Uh-huh… it…” 

“Are you sure he isn’t your boyfriend, he’s being quite a gentleman. You need one of those in your life, sweetie. You’re not getting any younger and this S.H.I.E.L.D gig of yours…”

“MOM.” 

“Right, right… I’m sorry. Robbie, let me show you to where you’ll be staying. I’ve heard so much about you! Let her get some time in with her Father and I can get you away long enough to pry…” “Yes Ma’am…” “No, no. Call me Lisa.” 

At least your Mother kept her intentions in the open, nose wrinkling at the idea. He was already being moved towards the front door, towards your father. You could imagine it now, poor Reyes getting question after question fired at him; not knowing how to respond. Hopefully you two didn’t dig a bigger hole than you were already in. The little burst of lust from earlier was still fresh in your mind and you weren’t quite sure if it was spur of the moment or if it was genuine. Yet, you ran with how everything was going.

From the car you watched Robbie place one of the bags of luggage down and outstretch a hand towards your father, like he had done your mother; introducing himself. Seemed as though he was hitting all the points that a good boyfriend should. If you two had become official, but you weren’t. It kept coming up like that, too; becoming rather unnerving. It was as though you two had been meaning to move forward, but something slipped in and it was put off. However, you’d waited this long… so why not calm down and see where it went?

As Robbie slipped inside, you closed the door on the passenger’s side of the Charger and made your way over to your Dad; hand clapping down on your shoulder as you were brought in for a tight hug. You might not have admitted it or said much, but you knew what this meant. It was as though he was telling you something without quite saying it, your arms wrapping around him as you gave a squeeze. The exchange was momentary enough as you parted, and your Father opened the door for you.

“I don’t know what it is about you, but that car better just be that. I raised you better than to go for some ‘bad boy’ persona,” he was the first to break the silence.

“Wait… what…” You paused in step, giving a glance back to your dad. “Oh, no… not you too.” 

“Pumpkin, don’t think I can’t see how you look at him. I wasn’t born yesterday,” he muttered. “This Reyes boy better pass.” 

“Not the test, Dad… that’s not fair. We aren’t even official.” “He’s staying under my roof, in the same room as you.” “What… I told mom to set up the guest room.” “You know how your Mother is, I set it up for you but I am sure she set him up in your room already.” “My… oh god.”

At that point you completely forgot about your Father’s warning as you dashed in. Not your childhood room. It hadn’t changed for quite some time as you only came in every so often. By this point you could see it, your Mother and Robbie sitting on the edge of your bed going through baby pictures; dashing up the stairs… you found just that. Reyes seemed rather intent on what your Mother was saying and you felt embarrassment settle in.

“And this is her…” “MOTHER.” “Oh, sweetie… I was just…” “STOP.” “Oh, don’t be like that, you were an adorable baby. See?” The book was turned towards you and you got an eyeful of a naked child in the bath surrounded by bubbles with a soap mohawk. Lovely. “Dad wanted to see you…” “Oh, he did? Oh! The dinner, it’s nearly done. Sweetie, your sister is coming over too… Get comfortable and we will see you down in twenty!” 

This woman was going to be the death of you, you swore. She brought you into the world, she was going to take you out. For some reason, you were out of breath and your cheeks darkened to an obscene shade of red as you watched the Rider chuckle at your expense. He seemed to be taking this all quite well. At that point, your mother had closed the book and set it back on your nightstand as she came towards you; pecking a kiss to your cheek and patting your back.

“You picked a keeper,” she had whispered in your ear and quickly made her way off.

Standing there you weren’t quite sure what you wanted to do. Go to your Mother and ask what he had said or give him that treatment. It seemed that his defenses were down, so you went for the man sitting on your bed as you walked over; closing the door behind you. Privacy.

“So… she likes you, what’d you say?” “Nothing out of the ordinary…” “Did you say that we were…” “No.” “Oh…” “Did you tell your Father, that?” “No.” “She seems to think that we’re in denial, though. Which, I was told to respect my elders.”

You’d settled yourself on the edge of your bed, taking the spot that had been occupied seconds earlier by your Mother; shaking your head. Of course. Taking him here might have been a decision best made for a time when you both were on the same page. Yet, there was no getting out of it, now. Instead, you found yourself leaning in against him, head resting against his shoulder as you puffed out a sigh.

“Were you, now?” You inquired softly. “Well, then… maybe we should take their advice?”

“Are you asking me out, chica?”

“I dunno…” You paused, lifting your head up just enough to turn to look at him; gauging his reaction. “Am I? Should… should I?”

“This is kind of backwards, eh? That’s my job, don’t take my job…” 

“I just…” You were cut off as he pushed your head back down against his shoulder, other hand coming up to gently run his fingers through your hair. He was soothing you. This feeling, was he about to reject you? Tears were quickly welling up in your eyes, holding your breath. This was it. He was going to do it.

“We’ll get there,” he murmured. “I don’t want you feeling like you have to do anything… but if you want to. I want you, I have for a long time. I know it sounds weird, but I know what I want.”

The breath you were holding was expelled as you quickly took in more to make up for the lack of oxygen. At that same point he’d shifted to pull you in against him, your face now easily buried in the crook of his neck as he continued to sooth you with his fingers moving through your hair. Maybe he had realized what he’d done and this was his way of trying to make it better?

“Don’t cry,” he finally spoke. “I didn’t mean to freak you out. I just don’t want you doing anything because you feel pressured.” 

It had finally hit you, as you remained quiet, trying to compose yourself; why he had wanted to meet your family…even without declaring that you were his. It was because the two of you already had some sort of feeling that was how it was, and he hadn’t gotten this. Something you had taken for granted. His uncle had raised him. You’d seen the way that he sat there, listening as your Mom rambled on about pictures in a book and it looked as though he belonged; as strange as it was. Yet, it was another bubble that probably might get popped, especially if Robbie’s other half reared while they were here.

“I want you too, Robbie.” Your words were soft and you moved to straddle him, lifting your face away from his chest. “I know I left… and I thought I had lost my chance.” The tears that had dried nearly came back as you bit down against your lower lip, his hand rubbing small circles against your back. “I just don’t know how to do this.”

“Neither do I, especially not with… him…”

“We’ll figu—”

A loud knocking was heard at your door before it abruptly swung open. Your body jumped, nearly tearing yourself away from Robbie. That sound, you knew who it was and the sight that they’d be graced with was not good. Why was this always happening? You knew the last time that you were in that you should have replaced the handle with one that locked! Instead of landing on the bed, your body hit the floor with a loud thump and you gave a soft grunt, noticing Robbie’s arms outstretched; just barely had he been successful in trying to break your fall. Yet, your eyes were focused on your Father, who didn’t look amused in the slightest as he gazed from your place on the ground to Robbie; back and forth a couple of times.

“Dinner is ready in ten minutes…” he gruffly spoke. “Are you crying?”

“NO, no! Dad, no. I uh… I mean, this fall. You scared me.” “You know the rules, Pumpkin. No clos—” “Are you kidding me? I’m an adult.” “My roof…” “So I’m supposed to sleep with the door ope—” 

You were cut off once more as you heard your Mother calling for your Father. In that time you’d pulled yourself up off the floor with the help of Reyes, as he checked on you during your exchange. It seemed that he still wanted to put on a good impression, even if it had looked like you two were caught doing something you shouldn’t have been. A look was given to your father, as if you were suggesting that he was making your Mother wait and he gave a grunt; turning to leave.

“If I find out you made her cry…” your father had paused mid-step; glancing back.

“Dad, he didn’t. Go, before you get in trouble, by more than just Mom.” 

You watched your Father retreat downstairs, puffing out another sigh. You were doing that a lot today, sighing. You felt two hands settle against each shoulder, rubbing in a relaxing manner as you melted back against them. Robbie knew what to do, it was as if you two were made for one another. Yet, you knew what words were to come as you brought one of your hands up to gently squeeze at one of his own as they worked against the muscles.

“Well, I’m sure that made a great impression…” Robbie had finally piped up as soon as your Father was out of ear-shot.

“Could have been worse…” you admitted with a half-chuckle. “We’ll just have to see at dinner, now won’t we?”

That’s when the test would start. Whatever that was. It’s not like you had brought home boys, your sister did. You just knew how your dad systematically found everything wrong with the boys trying to weasel their way into his daughter’s lives. It took your Dad forever to warm up to your sister’s husband and he was the best one that your sister had brought to meet your parents. 

“I almost wish we were training with May and getting my ass handed to me, chica. I won’t lie.” 

“Yeah, but… I’ll be there. You were the one that wanted this. He’s not so bad, I promise, he’s all bark and no bite.” Your Mother had called you from downstairs and you shifted in his arms, to peck a kiss against his lips. “I should see what she wants, Matchstick.” He gave you a look at that nickname, but he pecked a kiss back and released you, so you could go. 

“I’ll be down in a minute,” he assured.

“You better be,” you playfully warned; making your way off.


End file.
